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Sony sells waterproof Walkman in a bottle of water

MP3 players are no longer the hot property they were 10 years ago, but Sony has come up with a novel way to get people buying.

Michelle Starr Science editor
Michelle Starr is CNET's science editor, and she hopes to get you as enthralled with the wonders of the universe as she is. When she's not daydreaming about flying through space, she's daydreaming about bats.
Michelle Starr

MP3 players are no longer the hot property they were 10 years ago, but Sony has come up with a novel way to get people buying.

(Screenshot by Michelle Starr/CNET Australia)

Sony's waterproof W-series Walkman has been around for a year or so, but, given that it's a product with a very specific niche — people who don't want to damage their phones with jolts of sweat or water while exercising — it probably hasn't sold as well as the company would like.

Cue creative agency Draftfcb. In partnership with Sony, it devised a way to market the Walkman directly to its target demographic: by putting the Walkmans in bottles of water in vending machines. These vending machines were then placed at pools and gyms around New Zealand — right at the feet of its intended buyers.

No price was mentioned, but we're guessing its got an RRP of NZ$99.95 (AU$99).